Page 5 of Make Me (Immortal Vices and Virtues: All Hallows’ Eve #1)

TALON

S he’s here. My mate. The one I’ve spent decades looking for.

The only job I couldn’t finish—until now.

She’s in this house, in that damn dress, and she just walked away from me like I’m nothing.

Like there wasn’t a spark between us. Like the world didn’t shift the second our eyes met.

Like fate didn’t scream her name into my soul.

I don’t know how that’s possible, but I’ll be damned if I don’t find out.

The bond pulses inside me like a second heartbeat, too loud and alive. My wolf is clawing beneath the surface, thrashing with an intensity I haven’t felt since our first assignment. He doesn’t understand, he doesn’t want patience. He wants her now .

But I don’t let him break free. Not yet.

Something’s wrong. And I won’t leave this place until I know what that is.

I trail her through the ballroom like a shadow stitched to her heels. I keep my distance, forcing myself to remain a ghost amongst the crowd, but my gaze never leaves her. I don’t think it can . She’s like gravity now—an anchor and a riptide all at once.

For years, I was the name whispered in fear. The best tracker the supernatural world had ever seen. But that was before. Before I gave up the hunt and started chasing the only thing that’s ever really mattered.

My mate.

Only she remained hidden, unknown to me. My world darkened with every year that passed without her in it. And now?

Now, I’ve touched her skin, breathed in her scent—jasmine and spice with a wild twist—and looked into those green eyes that burn brighter than any emerald I’ve ever seen.

There’s no leaving her now. Not for me. Not for the beast that lives beneath my skin. Not without tearing apart everything in our way.

Whatever it takes for her to feel what’s currently coursing through me, I’ll do it. Hell, I’ll destroy the world to give her clarity because I need her .

She moves swiftly through the ballroom, weaving between the clusters of patrons like she was born of the stars and crafted in defiance.

Her hair is wildfire threaded with copper, catching sparks from the chandeliers above.

Her dress clings like magic—dark, shimmering, and edged in rebellion. She wears it like she’s ready for war.

And me? I’d fall on that battlefield without hesitation.

She turns down a hallway lined with soft golden sconces, the air subtly cooler and quieter here. This corridor leads toward the entertainment room, and she seems to be headed there with intent. Is she meeting someone? Another male?

A low growl starts in my throat.

If someone else touches her—if another so much as brushes against her—my control won’t just snap. It’ll shatter.

I wait a beat. Two. Then follow.

The room beyond is a surreal blend of indulgence and illusion.

It stretches wide, high ceilings draped in enchanted silk that glistens with every breath of movement.

Card tables sparkle like stardust under hovering orbs of silver light.

A trio of sirens sing on a center stage, their voices a melodic trap laced with compulsion that seems to be easing the tension in my shoulders.

The far wall is mesmerizing—a living mural that shifts between icy landscapes, celestial storms, and flames blooming like flowers.

But I don’t see any of it for more than a heartbeat.

My focus is locked on the only thing that matters.

She’s pacing near a marble column wrapped in vines that pulse with faint silver light. Her shoulders are tight, her posture brittle. One hand clutches a glowing drink—Moonlit Venom, if I heard the bartender right—and her lips move in a whispered rant, seemingly meant for no one other than herself.

Even from across the room, I feel the storm swirling inside her. Frustration. Confusion. Anger.

Still, I move closer .

Her head snaps around before I get within ten feet. “Are you following me?”

I stop immediately, hands up in surrender. “I didn’t mean to?—”

“You didn’t mean to?” she repeats, one brow arching like a blade, a humorless laugh following.

“You accidentally trailed me across a room full of supernaturals? Is that what I’m supposed to believe?

” Her eyes flick over my body like she’s scanning for weapons.

“Because I really don’t want this tonight. I’m not here for?—”

Now it’s my turn to cut her off since she clearly doesn’t sense the mate bond. But the way her gaze keeps drifting to my mouth, down my chest, then back up, tells me something’s registering beneath the surface. She just doesn’t know what it is.

“I was drawn to you,” I say, my tone low and steady. I take a small step forward despite the warning written in her eyes.

Her lips twitch, but not with amusement. More like suspicion. “Right. Because that isn’t creepy at all.”

My mouth almost curves. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”

“You didn’t,” she says too quickly, defensive even. “You’re just…annoying.”

Fair enough.

Still, I hold my ground. “What’s your name?”

Her jaw tightens slightly. “You first.”

“Talon Thorne.” I lift my left hand, flashing the Fire and Fluorite house ring etched with the two fused sigils—flame and gemstone, crackling with a hint of static magic.

She scoffs, her stare hardening like a barrier snapping into place. “Of course you’re from Fire and Fluorite.”

The way she says it, laced with judgment, like I just confirmed her worst assumption, tells me plenty. She thinks I’m like the others from my house. Arrogant, aggressive, and power hungry. Maybe at one point I was, but I left those traits behind long before this night.

“And you are?” I ask, unwilling to let this moment end before it begins.

She hesitates, glancing sideways as if deciding between offering me a lie or attempting to vanish entirely. Her eyes flick toward the wall of illusions again—wolves running through snow are now replaced by a phoenix rising between flames.

Finally, she exhales and murmurs, “Kasha.”

Kasha . I taste the name in my mind. It fits. It feels like something I’ve always known but never said aloud.

My chest tightens with the pressure building just under my ribs. My wolf is howling now, pacing within me, pulling me toward her with a desperation built over decades. I should wait, should ease her into this and figure out what’s keeping her from feeling what I know.

But I’m not built for patience.

Not with her.

Not with this.

I want the truth. I want my mate.

“Well, Kasha…” My blood warms as I steal another inch between us, her scent striking me like lightning fr om a summer storm. “There’s something I need to tell you. Something you deserve to know. But first, I need you to promise me something.”

She tilts her head, chin lifting a fraction as doubt fills her gaze. “I deserve to know, huh? What if I don’t want to?”

“Oh, you do.” I grin, letting my voice dip. “You just don’t realize it yet.”

Her posture stays guarded, but I feel the flicker. That tiny crack in her armor.

She’s not unaffected. She’s not unmoved.

She’s just…blocked. That has to be it.

I don’t know what’s keeping the bond from reaching her, but I can sense the emptiness in her, a void my wolf wants to fill. The longing inside her mirrors my own, even if she doesn’t know it.

And gods, if she lets me close enough, I’ll never let her feel hollow again.

“What do you want for this information?” Her question is heavy with mistrust just as her stare is, but none of that deters me.

“Only your promise that you won’t punch me or run when I say what needs to be said.”

That earns me a dry chuckle, her arms crossing beneath her chest in a move so casual it shouldn’t be distracting. Except it is. The motion pushes her curves upward, as if she knows exactly what she’s doing and is daring me to react.

“Not a chance in hell,” she snaps. “Fae don’t make promises they aren’t sure they can keep.”

Interesting. I sensed the magic in her, but the way she said that—as if it’s the whole truth and not just a part of it—has my instincts twitching. Something tells me she’s more than she’s letting on. But that’s a truth for another conversation.

“Fine,” I say, voice low. “Then just promise not to run. You’re welcome to use violence if you deem it necessary.”

The spark in her eyes returns, brighter now, and it’s Kasha who steps closer this time.

One calculated stride that brings her chest nearly flush with mine.

The heat from her skin rolls over me like a rising tide, and in one suspended breath, the rest of the room ceases to exist. No music. No guests. Just her.

“You’re playing with fire, but if you don’t mind getting burned, then sure. I promise not to run immediately after hearing what you have to say.”

It’s not much. But it’s enough.

I inhale, deep and steady, her sweet scent crashing through me.

It takes every ounce of willpower I possess not to bury my face in her neck.

I lift a hand slowly, hovering it just over her chest. I don’t touch her.

I don’t need to. The fire between us is alive, like energy prepared to detonate as I say my next words.

“You’re my mate, Kasha.”

The words land heavier than I imagined, each one a key clicking into place. There’s so much more I could tell her and plenty I want to add, but I don’t. I wait, painful as that is.

She blinks. Her whole body stiffens like I’ve just declared war .

“No, I’m not.” Her voice cracks, and this time, she takes a step back.

I let my hand fall to my side. “Yes, you are.”

“No,” she snaps again, retreating further. “Because if I were, I’d feel something.”

I move forward, slowly, carefully. Not close enough to touch, but enough that I can still breathe her in. “Maybe something’s blocking it for you. But I know?—”

“You don’t know me ,” she hisses, all fire and fear and something deeper. “You don’t get to make declarations about what I am to you just because your wolf is confused.”

“He’s not,” I say, voice calm but resolute. “It’s instinct. These things can’t be mistaken, Kasha.”

“Well, your instincts suck.” She glances at her wrist, though there’s nothing there. “And look at that. I’ve endured a full minute of this idiocy. I can leave now.”

She storms past me, shoulder brushing mine like a live wire. A spark ignites in her wake, but she doesn’t look back and I don’t follow. Not yet.

I just stand there, her scent still thick in my lungs, her absence echoing through every bone in my body.

She may not feel it, but gods help me, I do.

And I won’t stop until she does too.

Not because I want to force her, but because she needs to know the truth. Only then could I ever consider letting her walk away for good.

Even if it kills me.